UPDATED WITH WINNERS AND BACKSTAGE REACTIONS: The Producers Guild Awards at the Beverly Hilton ended with a stunner: The first tie for the top film prize in the PGAs’ 25-year history. Gravity and 12 Years A Slave shared the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures. The award for Gravity catapults the Warner Bros picture squarely into the Best Picture Oscar race, whereas up until now, it seems that 12 Years A Slave and American Hustlewere the front-runners. Deadline’s Pete Hammond will post an analysis of the awards later tonight.

On the TV side, AMC’s now-wrapped Breaking Bad won The Norman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Drama, and ABC’s Modern Family took the Danny Thomas Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Comedy, for a fourth consecutive year. The wins mirrorlast night’s SAG Awards and the Emmys. Breaking Bad also won the Golden Globe last week, but rookie Brooklyn Nine-Nine took the comedy prize.

If it weren’t for Jeff Robinov, former president of Warner Bros Motion Picture Group, Gravity would not have gotten made. The picture that stars Oscar nominee Sandra Bullock and George Clooney got shoved aside by Universal after Angelina Jolie dropped out. Enter Robinov, who took the project under his wing and was its behind-the-scenes champion. The film from producer, director and co-writer Alfonso Cuaron, now has a worldwide gross of $677M. Accepting the award with producer David Heyman, Cuaron joked that as a producer he found it difficult to work with a “stubborn, uncompromising director. By the way, his accent is an act; he has a perfect British accent, and he lives in London.” Of Bullock, he said: “I don’t care what the director thinks. She is Gravity.

12 Years a Slave, is based on the true story of Solomon Northup, who wrote a book about his life in 1853. Director Steve McQueen had been looking to do a film about slavery when his wife found the book and suggested it. Brad Pitt helped shepherd the film to the big screen and even had a small cameo to help get it some attention. Pitt was the first to speak for the producing team at the podium. “Why they let me lead, I don’t know,” he said. “I got my vote in at the last minute. I voted for Gravity,” he joked. Pitt added that the struggle to make a film is “a colossal pain in the ass” but to see that effort recognized is a “lovely, lovely feeling.” This movie, he said, was a chance “to contribute something to the yearly narrative, to culture, and that is f**king cool.” Director McQueen said some believed that audiences would not embrace the film because of its brutality but that they were proven wrong. “It’s not a black film, it’s not a white film,” he said.

Frozen, released on Thanksgiving Day, is not a surprise to win the Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures. The animated film has been a favorite not only of film critics but also for audiences around the globe, who have pushed it into the stratosphere with a worldwide box office take of $759.1M. The filmmakers have said they tried to keep the pic true to Disney’s classic animation style while working hard to make it look contemporary. Frozen is noteworthy in that it also used several different animation processes. One, called Spaces, allowed animators to deconstruct and rebuild characters; another was Flourish, which made the characters’ movements extremely realistic. Also, using a newly created program called Tonic, Disney animators made the character of Elsa’s hair look lifelike by creating 400,000 CGI threads. Winning the PGA Award, Frozen is nicely positioned going into Oscar season. It competes for the Academy Award with other nominees, Despicable Me 2, The Croods, The Wind Rises and Ernest And Celestine. However, the Academy could turn around and give it to Hayao Miyazaki, a legend in the world of animation who announced his retirement after this film. The Wind Rises is being released into theaters on February 21, nine days before the Academy Awards. Accepting the award for Frozen, producer Peter Del Vecho said: “I worked for Disney for almost 20 years. This is the first Disney film to bear the producers’ mark.”

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures went to We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks — which not only didn’t get an Oscar nom this week, it didn’t even make the shortlist of 15 pics. It’s the story of the now-infamous Australian journalist Julian Assange, the founder and editor of an organization that collected and disseminated whistleblower secrets on the website Wikileaks, starting in 2006. The film bowed to critical praise at last year’s Sundance Film Festival. It also was nominated for a BAFTA this year. Assange is a polarizing figure, called a hero by some and a threat to national security by others. He was named Time magazine’s Person of the Year in 2010 because of his Internet activism. Assange was not available to be interviewed for the documentary, so the filmmakers culled together old interview clips. Assange successfully avoided extradition to Sweden two years ago to face two sexual assault charges when he was granted political asylum by the Ecuadorean government in August 2012.

Accepting the Norman Lear Award, Chuck Lorre launched into a hilarious, insolent and occasionally raunchy monologue. He began by mentioning that he attended the Golden Globes last weekend, also at the Beverly Hitlon: “I was over there, not here,” he said, referring to the fact that he did not make it to the winners’ podium. Last week, he said, he had the honor of “peeing next to Ben Affleck. Yes, I peeked. And yes, Comic-Con — he can play Batman.” But seriously (sort of): Lorre called it “most overwhelming and a little embarrassing” to receive an award named for a man who “reinvented TV comedy and changed our culture. Just like Two And A Half Mendid. That’s why it’s embarrassing.” Lorre offered heartfelt thanks to colleagues and to his mother for her role in creating an “overachieving, twice-divorced, alcoholic comedy writer with colitis. I recovered from the colitis. The rest is still in play.” And with more than a little real emotion, he described his journey from a “broke-ass musician with no prospects” to a comedy writer in order to try to get health insurance for his young family. He ended his riff by saying: “I’ve been paying into the WGA health fund for 27 years … in return, I make enough money to use an out-of-network health provider.”

Presenter Affleck came onstage accompanied by the Batman theme — a cheeky follow-up to Chuck Lorre’s earlier comments about, er, size (not that it matters). “I want to thank someone tonight,” Affleck said. “Evidently I was at the bar briefly [and] there was a guy up onstage who said, ‘You have a big dick.’ The one time it happens I miss it. But thank you very much, whoever you are. I am often compared to Matt Damon but rarely with Michael Fassbender.” Affleck also cracked wise about the unusual circumstance of two winners for outstanding motion picture producing. He said he was told that the tie was “a legitimate mathematical numerical tie — but it was the producers who told me so.”

Steven Levitan said he was “excited and honored” by Modern Family’s win. But the comedy producer couldn’t resist a joke: “I am honored that I am a member of this guild, especially for having provided me with my third screener of Mud.” He also told the story of observing “the great Sean Penn” smoking on a balcony after receiving an award as Humanitarian of the Year. The ashes fell on some folks below, who shouted up to complain. Levitan quoted Penn as replying: “F**k me? F**k you, f**k you. … I’ll come down there and f**king kill you.” He used the incident as proof that ”sometimes producing means [speaking] from the heart.”

As part of his humorous intro for Bob Iger’s Milestone Award, Robert Downey Jr called the Disney chief “pound for pound the most dangerous CEO in America.” Iger joked that Downey is a “true superhero” because “every time he puts on his Iron Man costume “the Disney stock price gets lifted dramatically.” On a more serious note, Iger said he was “proud and humbled” by “the first award I’ve ever shared with Walt Disney himself.”

Captain Phillips star and screen newcomer Barkhad Abdi offered one of the best lines at the PGA Awards while introducing the episodic TV drama award: “I live in Minnesota. I drive a limousine. Tonight I came here in a limousine. I did not drive. I love Hollywood.”

Fruitvale Station star Michael B. Jordan stumbled a little over the word “persevere” in presenting the Stanley Kramer Award to Ryan Coogler’s film. But he persevered — the way he said the filmmaking team did in shooting the true-life drama in “20 days and 20 nights.” “Nobody slept,” he said. “It was too expensive to sleep.” In accepting the award, which is given to a film that “illuminates provocative social issues,” producer Nina Yang Bongiovi thanked the moviemaking team for including her as “an Asian female producer” and said she hoped that Fruitvale would help further diversity in filmmaking. Producer Forest Whitaker called Oscar Grant — the real-life subject of the film, who was shot to death by a BART police officer five years ago — “a symbol of injustice.”

Stanley Kramer’s widow Karen Kramer and daughter Kat Kramer stopped to talk about Fruitvale Station. They noted that Fruitvale is among a number of 2013 films that deal with “pressing social issues.” She added that the film had been “snubbed” in not receiving an Oscar nom for Best Picture. Does Karen Kramer believe that Lee Daniels’ The Butler, tracing the Civil Rights movement, was similarly snubbed? “We love that too,” she said. “But that was then. This [Fruitvale Station] is now.”

Introducing the David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures – which went to Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli — veteran producer David Picker offered heartfelt praise to the creators and maintainers of the Bond franchise through “23 movies over 50 years … with license to kill at the box office.” The latest James Bond, Daniel Craig, joined him in honoring the Bond years. In accepting the award, Wilson praised “our father, Cubby Broccoli” – who, when asked ‘What does a producer do?” replied, “My function is to be responsible for everything.” Wilson added, “When it came to Bond, his advice was, ‘It’s OK if you screw it up, but don’t let anybody else screw it up for you.’ ” Wilson went on to describe situations in which Cubby Broccoli had cooked dinner for the entire film crew and said he and Barbara Broccoli would do the same. “In this business where you are only as good as your last film, it’s [wise] to have a backup plan,” he said. Wilson joked that if the next Bond film is not a success, “Barbara and I will be available for all your catering needs.”

As Philomena star Steve Coogan introduced his co-presenter, Philomena Lee — who is portrayed in the film by Judy Dench — joked that Dench could not be present because she was off in India starring in a movie called The Best Erotic Magical Hotel.

House Of Cards star Kevin Spacey did a lengthy imitation of a Johnny Carson awards show monologue before he presented the top comedy series prize to the producers of Modern Family, which won for the fourth consecutive year. As part of his shtick — including some lame jokes about Miss Golden Globes and her golden globes — he offered that the film Saving Mister Banks should have been called Spanking Mister Hanks. Spacey also listed the many awards ceremonies during this season and suggested that they should all be rolled into one show that would last an entire weekend, by the end of which everyone could be “absolutely shitfaced.”

On the red carpet at the PGA Awards:

It’s almost too bad the weather was so good today: The red carpet at the Beverly Hilton Hotel was indoors. Deadline caught up with American Hustle producers Charles Roven and Richard Suckle, who appeared on the carpet with wife Maia Suckle. “It’s a great year in cinema,” he said. Asked what distinguishes this year’s crop of Oscar nominees, he noted the preponderance of films “inspired by true stories. Ours is fictionalized, but it’s real people … people respond to real stories.” The producer also noted that many of this year’s films are commercial successes (“a producer’s dream”) but added, “First and foremost, this is a filmmaker-driven business.” In a separate conversation, Roven said: “I remember that a few years ago there was a lot of [talk} about filmmaking being segmented, that studios were only making tentpole films. This year we’ve proven that films can be commercial and still be fantastic.” When asked about Hustle’s Oscar chances, Suckle said, “I honestly don’t think too much about that. It’s out of my control. I keep my head down and hope people continue to see our movie.” When the Oscar nominations came out on Thursday morning, director David O Russell was fielding questions by phone while ill with some sort of bug. Suckle assured us that he’s here tonight and up for the festivities. “David always finds a way to step up his game, with bells and whistles on,” Suckle said.

The Wolf Of Wall Street producer Joey McFarland said he was surprised and excited by the Oscar nomination recognition. “To see the names of everybody listed in the nominations was a proud moment for us,” he said. McFarland noted that this year’s crop of awards films are “movies with a real message,” including his. “These are not common, mainstream formulaic movies,” he added. His colleague, Wolf producer Riza Aziz agreed, saying that the types of films getting award recognition this season indicate an era of successful partnerships between major studios and independent producers.

House of Cards producer Beau Willimon was delighted to find himself on the PGA red carpet. “We had no idea we would be eligible for anything,” he said of the Netflix series. “It means more coming especially from the producers guild because they know how damn hard it is make a show.” He acknowledged that House of Cards is a binge-watcher’s favorite but noted: “It’s a healthy form of addiction. It’s only 13 hours of your life once a year.”

9 Comments

help this show is so boring I cant wait to RUN out of here
hard to imagaine producers cannot produce a better show

Question • on Jan 19, 2014 9:00 pm

Why aren’t the Producers Guild Awards telecast or available to view online?

Greggers • on Jan 19, 2014 9:03 pm

Someone tell Levitan’s assistant to get his mail sorted properly – PGA members were unfortunately not sent screeners of “Mud.”

The best • on Jan 19, 2014 9:20 pm

Would not these awards be considered the most important for the industry.

Sam • on Jan 19, 2014 9:44 pm

Steven Levitan story of Sean Penn was f–king hilarious , I had a good laugh.

Pete • on Jan 19, 2014 10:27 pm

When the 2 movies tied for the same award…how many dozen producers walked onto the stage?

Carlos Estevez • on Jan 19, 2014 11:55 pm

To all those pessimistic losers who lack confidence and self-esteem, be optimistic because in 20 or 30 years if you work hard you could win the soon to be created Chuck Lorre Award for Most Arrogant Obnoxious Egomaniac TV Producer. That’s something to strive for. And if you become a loud-mouth jerk like Chuck you could win The Chuck Lorre Award. The PGA will soon realize they have to create this new award Chuck demands that they name an award after him and he always gets what he wants.

Veyan • on Jan 20, 2014 1:34 am

How did Gravity not win , it’s a cinematic achievement , then to have the movie gross 700 million world wide , without any Super Hero’s , a women lead and barely any dialogue .
What was the risk in 12 years, throwing a few dollars and making a movie that before even showing one scene critics would be raving .

International markets now make up 60 % of Hollywood revenues , how can Gravity not win Best Picture, a movie that buys world audiences into the legitimacy of the Oscar’s and deserves to win irrespective of being a blockbuster .

An achievement and doesn’t feel like a movie that has been made before. The rest of the world will just pass off 12years as America’s usual obsession with racial politics especially when at most it will gross 25 million dollar internationally.

adam • on Jan 22, 2014 10:01 am

I enjoyed the movie but don’t put yourself in the same category as 12 years when talking about wolf. 12 years was deep. your “movie” was about a guy who made a living off other peoples misery. it had ZERO message.

The Wolf Of Wall Street producer Joey McFarland said he was surprised and excited by the Oscar nomination recognition. “To see the names of everybody listed in the nominations was a proud moment for us,” he said. McFarland noted that this year’s crop of awards films are “movies with a real message,” including his. “These are not common, mainstream formulaic movies,” he added. His colleague, Wolf producer Riza Aziz agreed, saying that the types of films getting award recognition this season indicate an era of successful partnerships between major studios and independent producers.